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A bill to be entitled

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An act relating to an electronic monitoring program for

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tracking lost persons; establishing a grant program to

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encourage counties to implement county lifesaver programs;

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describing the components of the program; designating the

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Department of Law Enforcement as the administrative

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agency; providing for application for state grant funds

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and requiring local matching funds; providing a cap on the

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amount of a grant and for prioritizing and prorating

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grants; requiring the county sheriff's office or other

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lead agency to use the funds for purchasing equipment and

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training; requiring the solicitation of private moneys and

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the achievement of financial independence for the program

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within a specified time; providing an effective date.

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     WHEREAS, more than 5 million United States residents have

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Alzheimer's disease and more than 50 percent of those individuals

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wander and become lost, and

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     WHEREAS, autism is the fastest-growing serious developmental

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disability in the United States and many autistic individuals

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wander and are attracted to water, causing drowning to be the

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leading cause of death for children who have autism, and

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     WHEREAS, Project Lifesaver is a search-and-rescue program

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that can quickly find wandering individuals who have Alzheimer's

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disease, autism, Down syndrome, or other mental impairments, and

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     WHEREAS, Project Lifesaver was established in Virginia in

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1999 and has been implemented by law enforcement agencies and

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public safety agencies across the country, and

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     WHEREAS, agencies that sponsor local lifesaver programs have

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stated that the program materially reduces the time required to

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find lost persons, often to less than ½ hour after the person is

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reported missing, within which period there is a 100 percent

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recovery rate, and

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     WHEREAS, 16 Florida counties and 5 police departments have

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implemented lifesaver programs, NOW, THEREFORE,

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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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     Section 1. Lifesaver program grants.--

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     (1) A state grant program is established to encourage each

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county in this state to implement a lifesaver program that is

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modeled after Project Lifesaver, a search-and-rescue program

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designed to quickly find a lost or wandering person who is

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mentally impaired due to Alzheimer's disease, autism, Down

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syndrome, or other causes. The program uses small transmitters,

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which are usually worn on a participant's wrist, to

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electronically track lost or wandering participants. A county

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sheriff's office or other lead agency is equipped with receivers

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that track the transmitters.

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     (2) The Department of Law Enforcement shall administer the

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grant program, manage the state moneys appropriated for the

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purpose of starting county programs, and serve as a liaison to

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county lifesaver programs.

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     (3) To apply for state grant moneys for implementing a

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county lifesaver program, a county sheriff's office or other lead

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agency must submit an application annually by October 1, which

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includes:

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     (a) An estimate of the number of people who might qualify

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for lifesaver assistance;

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     (b) An estimate of the startup cost;

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     (c) A statement of the number of personnel available for

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tracking lost individuals; and

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     (d) The source or sources and the amount of local funds

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available for matching state grant moneys.

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     (4) The department shall prioritize the grant moneys in

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accordance with the respective counties' needs for tracking

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services, the availability of local sources to provide matching

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funds, and the date the application was received by the

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department. The maximum grant that a county may receive for

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startup is $10,000, and the amount awarded must be matched,

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dollar for dollar, by local funds. Grants awarded to qualifying

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counties must be prorated in accordance with the availability of

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state funds.

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     (5) The county sheriff's office or other lead agency shall

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use the grant money and matching funds to purchase the necessary

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equipment and training to implement a county lifesaver program.

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Through its community resource officer, the sheriff's office or

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other lead agency shall solicit moneys from private sources so as

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to ensure that within 3 years the lifesaver program is self-

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supporting and no longer requires state funding.

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     Section 2. The sum of $670,000 is appropriated from the

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General Revenue Fund to the Department of Law Enforcement for the

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2008-2009 fiscal year for the purpose of awarding grants to

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counties that qualify under this act to start a county lifesaver

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program.

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     Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.